Opal is the official gemstone of Australia, as the nation produces over 95% of the world’s precious opals.
One of the most famous crystal opals is The Queen’s Opal, mined from the Andamooka opal fields. The stone was cut into a jewelry set and given to the Queen of England as a gift from the Australian government.
The Aurora Australis
Weighing 180 carats, the ‘Aurora Australia’ is considered the world’s most valuable Black Opal. It was discovered in Lightning Ridge, Australia in 1938 from an old sea bed. The harlequin pattern with dominant blue, green and red colours on a black background resembles the bright southern lights which is how the opal got its name the ‘Aurora Australis’. It was cut and polished into an oval shape from it’s original semi rough form.
It is considered one of the most valuable opals ever found.
The Olympic Australis
One of the largest and most valuable opals ever discovered in the world is the Olympic Australis opal, found in Coober Pedy (South Australia) in 1956 at the ‘Eight Mile’ Opal field. This stone weighs approximately 3.4 kilograms and can be viewed as part of the Altmann & Cherny Collection based in Melbourne. The stone was named after the Olympic Games which were being held in Melbourne the same year as this Opal was discovered.
Galaxy Opal
The world’s largest polished famous Opal is The Galaxy Opal, found in Brazil in 1976. It was certified by the Guinness Book of World Records in 1992 and weighs approximately 3,749 carats. It was polished from a grapefruit-sized piece of rough opal weighing 5,205 carats.
